The fourth installment and first reboot of the Alone in the Dark video game series, developed by Darkworks and published by Infogrames Entertainment, SA, is titled Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare (also known internally as Alone in the Dark 4).
The game came out in 2001 for multiple systems, such as PC, PS2, PS3, Dreamcast, and Game Boy Color. Several months later, and exclusively in Europe, a PlayStation 2 version of the game was released.
If you can’t find a citation, The French edition of the prequel comic Alone in the Dark: Life is a Hideous Thing, published by Semic Comics in 2001, was translated and released in the United States in September 2002.
Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare Gameplay
When starting a new game, the player can decide which of the two main characters they want to control. Carnby’s half of the story focuses on using force to defeat the creatures, especially with the help of his trusted double-barreled handgun, whereas Aline’s half is more puzzle-oriented. They run into each other now and then, and their storylines ultimately converge.
Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare pic.twitter.com/Ig4xh3M20E
— Horror Games Community (@horrorvisuals) April 6, 2021
Creatures of Darkness, which arise out of thin air and are eerily similar to living shadows, quickly launch an assault on the player. There is a massive underground world called the World of Darkness in the center of the Earth that is home to the reptilian, silicon-based Creatures of Darkness. One of the many entrances to this underground universe appears on Shadow Island.
The opponents’ aversion to light (which supposedly converts them into ash) is a crucial mechanic in the game. A player’s flashlight can scare away certain monsters, and players can kill them with magnesium bullets or phosphorus shells, both of which produce light.
In this game, light is essential. The flashlight is integral to the gameplay since it is utilized to illuminate the game’s shadowy environments to find previously inaccessible elements and objects.
So that the 3D player character’s flashlight would properly light up and create shadows on the 2D, pre-rendered backdrops, the developers crafted a peculiar graphics engine.
This was achieved by providing data on the placement of objects in the environment and drawing the backgrounds at different brightness levels. When done, the graphics engine could correctly employ lighter experiences in the spots where the flashlight was meant to be shining and darker ones in the shadows.
Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare Plot
Dated October 31st, 2001, Edward Carnby’s best friend and business partner, Charles Fiske, was recently found floating face down in the waters off the coast of Massachusetts on Shadow Island.
Carnby pursues the clues until he finds Frederick Johnson, who explains to him how Fiske is looking for three ancient tablets that, combined, hold the key to unleashing a horrifying and enormous power.
Johnson begs Carnby to step in for Fiske and restart the probe so they can get the pills back. Carnby agrees to do it, making it his duty to track down Fiske’s murderer. Professor Aline Cedrac, a bright young scholar Johnson introduces to Edward, is a friend of Johnson’s.
She thinks Professor Obed Morton is her father, so she and Edward go on a mission to find the stolen tablets and help him. A mysterious beast attacks Edward and Aline’s plane as they fly over the shores of Shadow Island. Edward and Aline exit the aircraft via parachute but are quickly separated upon impact.
While Aline lands on the mansion’s roof, Edward lands in the thick woodland surrounding the estate. The video game’s story is non-canon to the rest of the series.
Alone in the Dark New Nightmare really knew how to describe their characters pic.twitter.com/XcDF4ubu2u
— Ecdycis (@Ecdycis) September 4, 2022
Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare Production and Release
Unlike previous entries, this one was built from the ground up for consoles and released as a cross-platform game. Darkworks developed the PlayStation and Dreamcast versions; the Dreamcast version came out a month after the PlayStation version and featured much-upgraded visuals. The original version was released on Dreamcast, and Spiral House ported it to Windows.
It was released at the same time as the Dreamcast version, but there are problems with the sound conversion that result in lower-quality reproductions of the entire soundtrack.
After the Dreamcast version was published, Spiral House ported it to the PlayStation 2 and released it a few months later with voice acting for the game’s polygonal characters in the cutscenes.
Pocket Studios also created a Game Boy Color port of the game. Unlike earlier handheld systems, which would often simplify games for portability by switching to 2D sprites instead of 3D environments, the Game Boy Color edition stays true to the original.
Due to the Game Boy Color’s cartridge-based format, several gameplay areas had to be scaled down, if not completely removed. This included full-motion video cut sequences. Nevertheless, the basic pre-rendered settings and 3D characters superimposed on top of them have remained.
Read more:-
- Pacific Drive Horror Game Olympic Exclusion Zone
- Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 PC Requirements: Can Your System Handle This Game?
Except for the PlayStation 2 version, which was only distributed in Europe, Infogrames published the game in North America. Capcom had planned to release the PlayStation and PlayStation 2 versions in Japan; however, these plans were scrapped.
While previous Alone in the Dark games in Japan were wholly dubbed into Japanese, CyberFront released this installment for Windows in 2002 with English voices and Japanese subtitles.
In May 2012, the PlayStation version became available on the PlayStation Network as a PS1 classic. As of September 1st, you may also play it on your PlayStation Vita, but if you own a PSP, you’re out of luck. There is a Windows PC version available on Steam as of October 2013.
Final Words: We hope you have found all the information about “Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare Gameplay, Plot, and More Information.” For the latest news and information, stay tuned with us here at Gameempress.com.
Frequently asked questions
Is Alone in the Dark 2008 a remake?
Alone in the Dark is a different game on the PS2 and Wii than on the PS3 and Xbox 360. While the stories are similar, the gameplay is very different, with no free exploration like in the other versions.
How many Alone in the Dark games are there?
The works of H. P. Lovecraft heavily influenced the first game in the series, but subsequent games drew from various influences, including voodoo, the Old West, and the art of H. R. Giger. The series has six episodes, each exploring a unique topic or setting.